Donor Spotlight | Joe Haas Receives Inaugural CYC Foundation President's Award

December 15, 2022

Former Commodore Joe Haas was just a kid when he fell in love with boating. Raised in a family of accomplished sailors, the life lessons Joe learned on the water – things like perseverance, independence, and adaptability – have served him well not only in competitive sailing but throughout his life and career.

Today, Joe hopes to give Chicagoland children, especially underserved youth, the opportunity to learn those same life lessons on the water, and that’s why he is an avid and longtime supporter of the Chicago Yacht Club Foundation.

In recognition of his extraordinary service to the Foundation over many years, the Board of Directors selected Joe to receive the inaugural CYC Foundation President’s Award.  

“The President’s Award is given to a person who goes above and beyond to support the Foundation, and that truly describes Joe,” said Greg Miarecki, CYC Foundation President. “Joe has been exceptionally generous to the Foundation and, more importantly, his actions have inspired the generosity of others.”

In 2021, Joe contributed a $45,000 matching gift to the Foundation, and this year he is one of a small group of donors offering $100,000 in matching funds to support the Foundation’s Annual Appeal. An expert in strategic planning, Joe also facilitated the Foundation’s strategic planning summit last January.

Joe learned early in his career the importance of giving back after working for a CEO who set aside 10 percent of the company’s annual profits for charitable contributions. “He’s the person who taught me how important this is. You can’t think of gifting as a one-time thing – it needs to be a way of life,” he said.

Throughout the years, Joe has been involved in various Foundation youth sailing programs and witnessed the transformational power of the sport. “I would meet kids when they were starting out – and then see them when they were graduating high school – and they were different people. They learned teamwork and self-confidence, and those things will make them more successful in life,” he said. The Foundation’s new Maritime Academy, a program designed to teach kids the skills needed to work on Chicago’s many commercial boats, is another initiative Joe finds especially compelling.

Joe is a longtime member of the Chicago Yacht Club and served as Commodore from 2011-2012. An accomplished competitive sailor, Joe has competed in 15 CYC Races to Mackinac and won prizes in the Cruising Division multiple times. In 2013, aboard his Hanse 630e, Infinite Diversion, Joe won the coveted triple bullet, winning prizes for the first Cruising Division boat to finish, first place in section, and first place overall in the division. His dedication to the Club and the sport drives his commitment to make Lake Michigan and boating more accessible to Chicagoland kids.